Tips and Templates for Creating Great Status Reports

written by: Remy Boyd
• edited by: Jean Scheid
• updated: 9/28/2011

Is it time to provide your team, department manager or client with a project status report? Unsure how to create or format the report to meet company standards? Whether you are new to status reports or have been writing them for a long time, use this guide as a resource for yourself or your team.

slide 1 of 2

Project managers know the value of keeping teams, management and clients abreast of project status. You can save time on a long search by reading these articles on Bright Hub. They will quickly assist you by providing well researched and thought out information on the ins and outs of creating status reports.

Find tips on effective writing, formatting, structure and the use of status templates. The articles also discuss using various software programs like Visio, Microsoft Excel, Word and Outlook while providing resources for implementing status report templates into the current systems you may already have in use.

Bookmark this guide as I will be updating it as new information becomes available to help you produce the best project status reports.

Wondering where to start with your project status report? Writing an effective project status report is not as hard as it may seem which is why this article is recommended. The critical elements of writing status reports are discussed, including some insight on how to manage the project team during the process.

We all know projects can become very complex and when that occurs, it’s important to understand how to manage potential problems. This is a great article on how to use project status reports to not only keep clients and management abreast of your progress, but how to compile the information clearly and succinctly for easy understanding.

A quick set of tips is always a great approach to solving any problem, and this list is no exception. Here you will find 10 ways to make your project status reports more effective. The author includes a focus on the structure of a report what makes why the substance of a strong report is so important.

Clients need the most up to date information on their projects, making status reports key for outlining the most important issues facing the project management team. Status reports are a direct method for communicating needs assessments and deciphering whether or not the team in on the right track.

Here you will find another great list of tips with a specific focus on project teams. This guide features ten tips on how to manage and track your project management reports efficiently and the article provides a quick overview of the top methods for teams that are short on time.

Have you ever thought of using Microsoft Excel for your project status reports? Here, we provide a thorough discussion on how to create a monthly status report using Excel and you really don’t have to be an Excel expert to do it! Follow the tips outlined in this article and you’ll be well on your way to finishing the report using this simplified method.

Another take on how to create a project status report using Microsoft Excel. What are the benefits of creating a status report using Excel? Simplicity for one and this article provides a great explanation in addition to an example and a template for you to follow.

Have you ever thought of using Microsoft Outlook to create a project status report? Mostly used for email communications and calendar management functions, Outlook is easily accessible to anyone using Microsoft and is versatile and easy enough to use for a full scale report or to provide quick updates.

Visually appealing project status reports are always appreciated by clients. Using MS Visio is one way to make them come to life! Read this article to find out how to use Visio for your status reports and have a creative, stylish and easy to read report in no time.

Status reports should be quick and simple to create. Microsoft Word offers both as it is extremely easy multi-functional. Being so, it can be used to create many types of documents including project status reports. This guide will tell you how and even provide a sample form for you to follow.

Templates are always great for creating much needed documents in a short amount of time. Keep clients in the loop about the status of your project by using the templates provided in this article. We also include the basics of providing goals and objectives, tracking features, scheduling and visual elements such as graphs and diagrams.

Are you looking for project status report templates and tools? Here you will read a short article on how to ascertain project management weekly status reports, including tools on how to utilize them during the project management life cycle and the best part is that they are free.

Do you have a lot of status updates for your project, but unsure how often to send them? Here, we provide a review of the frequency at which status reports can be submitted after a set amount of work is done, and what factors to look for when making this important decision.

Creating project status reports are possible with consistent effort and implementation. Utilizing the knowledge and information outlined in these guides, you will spend more time managing a successful team project instead of endlessly searching for help on how to write your report. Once they are completed, your improved status reports will speak for themselves.